Kapuso stars sell items on eBay via 'Celebrity Ukay-Ukay'

In an effort to reach a wider audience, GMA Network's Kapuso Foundation is bringing its "Celebrity Ukay-Ukay" project online, through the popular e-Commerce and bidding website eBay Philippines. Come July 15, personal items of select local celebrities will be put up for auction on the project's eBay microsite (www.ebay.ph/ukayukay), which will allow fans and enthusiasts alike to bid on items owned by famous showbiz personalities. Celebrity apparel such as an autographed jersey by Chris Tiu, a Party Pilipinas personalized denim jacket from Dingdong Dantes and a fire-engine red bustier gown worn by Kris Aquino on the cover of her magazine's birthday issue are just some of the items that will be put up for auction. Users of eBay could also bid for unique accessories such as John Lapus' Andy Warhol Seiko Watch, Regine Velasquez's Prada Purse and Sharon Cuneta's Valentino Rosette Sandals. The first batch of celebrity-owned items will be up for auction until July 25, after which a new batch of items will be put up by the foundation for fans to bid on. Part of the second tranche of bid items include Mel Tiangco's Paul Cabral evening gown, Ogie Alcasid's long-sleeved polo designed by Randy Ortiz, Kris Aquino's cocktail dress also by Randy Ortiz and Regine Velasquez's Aubergine gown by Nicole Miller. Starting bid price for these items range from a minimum of P499 to P9,999. Kapuso Foundation's Mel Tiangco said the year-round online ukay-ukay will open doors for more interested buyers to have rare memorabilia of their favorite celebrities, aside from helping the foundation. "[Through this online endeavor], this time, we are hoping that it can also become a venue where people can share their resources, and where people can bring out the love in their hearts for their fellow men, for those who are in need," Tiangco said. Tiangco said they chose the eBay platform because of the speed to which they can easily dispense of the items. "We wanted to be able to sell fast, and we wanted to be able to reach a younger set [of consumers], which we think are the eBay users," she said. Tiangco added that the online ukay-ukay will complement the foundation's semi-annual celebrity bazaar, which happens every summer and Christmas seasons. "Walang network wars dito," Tiangco said, noting how celebrities from other television stations have also pledged to donate items for auction. Proceeds of the online auction will benefit Kapuso Foundation's ongoing Kapuso School Development (KSD) project, which aims to build and repair classrooms in the poorest and remotest areas in the country. Not praying for calamities In the latest count of the Department of Education, some 146,946 classrooms still need to be built to address the shortage of rooms in the Philippines. Tiangco said the celebrity ukay-ukay's ramped-up operations and expansion online seeks to augment the foundation's funds in order to build more classrooms nationwide. "Our school development project used to be calamity-based. Which means, if there is a calamity, there is an outpouring of support from the public," Tiangco explained. Since the foundation doesn't want to literally pray for calamities to occur in order to generate funds, the group decided to be proactive and looked for new venues and sources of income. "Parang ang hirap naman noon, 'di ba, na mananalangin ka sa Diyos for a calamity? We now have been thinking of how to produce the money without any calamity, to be able to continue our school rehabilitation project," she said. The foundation added that since it has grown a reputation with the more than 250 classrooms it had built since 2003, many schools not necessarily affected by calamities have sent requests for assistance to the foundation. "Just the same, their situation clearly shows how deprived they are, even neglected in terms of not having decent and learning-conducive classrooms," it said. — TJD, GMA News